The present invention concerns lifting slings for lifting, holding or otherwise manipulating heavy articles.
Previous inventions have been designed for the carrying or lifting gas cylinders. One such device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,146 issued to Kirk, which describes a metal hoop having a handle. The metal hoop, which is sized slightly larger than the diameter of a cylinder to be lifted, is slipped around the cylinder so that when the cylinder is lifted by the handle, the hoop retains the cylinder through frictional contact on the bottom and top of the device. This device, however, is disadvantageous in that it is suitable for lifting cylinders of only one size, the metal hoop tends to damage the surface finish of cylinders, and it is susceptible to slipping.
Conventional nylon web slings configured to have a choker mechanism at one end also have been used to lift gas cylinders. In such a device, one end of the sling is threaded through the choker to form an adjustable loop which is then placed around the cylinder to be lifted. The loop is tightened around the cylinder and the free end of the sling is connected to a lifting mechanism, such as a load hook or a forklift tine. As the lifting mechanism is raised, the sling is pulled taught, causing the loop to frictionally engage the outer surface of the cylinder and lift the cylinder. Nylon slings are desirable because they can be adjusted to fit around a cylinder of any size and do not damage the surface finish of the cylinder. The use of nylon slings, however, is limited because the coefficient of friction provided by the nylon may not be sufficient to adequately grip heavy or wet cylinders.
One device attempts to improve upon the inadequate frictional properties of nylon by encasing a nylon strap in an elastomeric sleeve. Although the sleeve increases gripping capability, this type of sling proves to be difficult to use when handling metal cylinders. When a loop is formed and tightened around a cylinder, the elasticity of the sleeve causes the loop to lose the shape of the cylinder unless tension is maintained on the sling. As a result, an operator must maintain the loop with one hand while simultaneously operating the lifting mechanism with his other hand until there is sufficient tension in the sling to grip the cylinder. This practice is cumbersome and may lead to operator injury. The elastomeric-sleeved lifting sling is also undesirable in that the sleeve produces unwanted surface friction against the choker mechanism as slack is removed from the loop.
Therefore, a need exists for a new and improved lifting sling that overcomes the foregoing and other disadvantages of the prior art.
The disclosed embodiments of the present invention seek to overcome the foregoing problems of the prior art by providing an improved lifting sling for lifting and moving heavy loads, such as cylinders containing pressurized gas. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a lifting sling comprises an elongated, flexible member having a working surface, a lifting end portion for attaching to a lifting mechanism and a choker end portion. A plurality of longitudinally spaced apart gripping members are attached to the working surface of the member for frictionally engaging the outer surface of the load to be lifted. The sling preferably includes a choker ring fastened to the choker end portion through which the lifting end portion may be inserted to form an adjustable loop with a variable diameter to fit around the outer surface of a load of any size or configuration.
When lifting or otherwise moving a load with the sling, the sling should be configured to form an adjustable loop, as previously described, which is placed about the load. The size of the loop is adjusted to contact a surface of the load by manually tensioning the sling in a direction away from the load until the loop fits snugly around the outer surface of the load. The lifting end portion, which is secured to a lifting mechanism, is moved in a direction away from the load to remove the slack from the sling. As the sling is pulled, tension in the sling is converted to a circumferential gripping force about the load and the load is lifted
The foregoing features and advantages of the present invention are described further in the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.